Pub Date : 2022-05-26DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00229-5
Jun Fujita, Yoshihiro Tamura, H. Amano, K. Ohno, S. Tadokoro
{"title":"Novel exterior cover design for radiant heat resistance of firefighting robots in large-scale petrochemical complex fires","authors":"Jun Fujita, Yoshihiro Tamura, H. Amano, K. Ohno, S. Tadokoro","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00229-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00229-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-05-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65733825","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-26DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00227-7
Keita, Kaneko, Kenjiro, Takemura
Soft robots have advantages in terms of safety, softness, and compliance compared to traditional robotic systems. However, fluid-driven soft actuators, often employed in soft robots, require a corresponding number of bulky pressure supplies/valves to drive. Here, we consider a valve that can control the flow without mechanical moving parts for simplifying the driving system of soft actuators. We developed a system comprising a pump, a switching valve, and two latex balloons to demonstrate the feasibility of introducing a fluid valve into soft robotics. As the valve, which makes use of the Coanda effect, can switch the flow between two outlets when the pressure difference between the outlets is 3 kPa, we employed a latex balloon connected to each outlet. The system can control the expansion of each balloon by switching the flow from the pump. The experimental results proved that the system could actuate each balloon.
{"title":"Switching control of latex balloon expansion by using switching valve mediated with the Coanda effect","authors":"Keita, Kaneko, Kenjiro, Takemura","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00227-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00227-7","url":null,"abstract":"Soft robots have advantages in terms of safety, softness, and compliance compared to traditional robotic systems. However, fluid-driven soft actuators, often employed in soft robots, require a corresponding number of bulky pressure supplies/valves to drive. Here, we consider a valve that can control the flow without mechanical moving parts for simplifying the driving system of soft actuators. We developed a system comprising a pump, a switching valve, and two latex balloons to demonstrate the feasibility of introducing a fluid valve into soft robotics. As the valve, which makes use of the Coanda effect, can switch the flow between two outlets when the pressure difference between the outlets is 3 kPa, we employed a latex balloon connected to each outlet. The system can control the expansion of each balloon by switching the flow from the pump. The experimental results proved that the system could actuate each balloon.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"49 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-05-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527562","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-21DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00225-9
Habibian, Soheil, Wheatley, Benjamin B., Bae, Suehye, Shin, Joon, Buffinton, Keith W.
Although robots are increasingly found in a wide range of applications, their use in proximity to humans is still fraught with challenges, primarily due to safety concerns. Roboticists have been seeking to address this situation in recent years through the use of soft robots. Unfortunately, identifying appropriate models for the complete analysis and investigation of soft robots for design and control purposes can be problematic. This paper seeks to address this challenge by proposing two complementary modeling techniques for a particular type of soft robotic actuator known as a Fiber-Reinforced Elastomeric Enclosure (FREE). We propose that researchers can leverage multiple models to fill gaps in the understanding of the behavior of soft robots. We present and evaluate both a dynamic, lumped-parameter model and a finite element model to extend understanding of the practicability of FREEs in soft robotic applications. The results of experimental simulations using a lumped-parameter model show that at low pressures FREE winding angle and radius change no more than $$2%$$ . This observation provided confidence that a linearized, dynamic, lumped-mass model could be successfully used for FREE controller development. Results with the lumped-parameter model demonstrate that it predicts the actual rotational motion of a FREE with at most $$4%$$ error when a closed-loop controller is embedded in the system. Additionally, finite element analysis was used to study FREE design parameters as well as the workspace achieved with a module comprised of multiple FREEs. Our finite element results indicate that variations in the material properties of the elastic enclosure of a FREE are more significant than variations in fiber properties (primarily because the fibers are essentially inextensible in comparison to the elastic enclosure). Our finite element analysis confirms the results obtained by previous researchers for the impact of variations in winding angle on FREE rotation, and we extend these results to include an analysis of the effect of winding angle on FREE force and moment generation. Finally, finite element results show that a $$30^{circ }$$ difference in winding angle dramatically alters the shape of the workspace generated by four FREEs assembled into a module. Concludingly, comments are made about the relative advantages and limitations of lumped-parameter and finite element models of FREEs and FREE modules in providing useful insights into their behavior.
{"title":"Evaluation of two complementary modeling approaches for fiber-reinforced soft actuators","authors":"Habibian, Soheil, Wheatley, Benjamin B., Bae, Suehye, Shin, Joon, Buffinton, Keith W.","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00225-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00225-9","url":null,"abstract":"Although robots are increasingly found in a wide range of applications, their use in proximity to humans is still fraught with challenges, primarily due to safety concerns. Roboticists have been seeking to address this situation in recent years through the use of soft robots. Unfortunately, identifying appropriate models for the complete analysis and investigation of soft robots for design and control purposes can be problematic. This paper seeks to address this challenge by proposing two complementary modeling techniques for a particular type of soft robotic actuator known as a Fiber-Reinforced Elastomeric Enclosure (FREE). We propose that researchers can leverage multiple models to fill gaps in the understanding of the behavior of soft robots. We present and evaluate both a dynamic, lumped-parameter model and a finite element model to extend understanding of the practicability of FREEs in soft robotic applications. The results of experimental simulations using a lumped-parameter model show that at low pressures FREE winding angle and radius change no more than $$2%$$ . This observation provided confidence that a linearized, dynamic, lumped-mass model could be successfully used for FREE controller development. Results with the lumped-parameter model demonstrate that it predicts the actual rotational motion of a FREE with at most $$4%$$ error when a closed-loop controller is embedded in the system. Additionally, finite element analysis was used to study FREE design parameters as well as the workspace achieved with a module comprised of multiple FREEs. Our finite element results indicate that variations in the material properties of the elastic enclosure of a FREE are more significant than variations in fiber properties (primarily because the fibers are essentially inextensible in comparison to the elastic enclosure). Our finite element analysis confirms the results obtained by previous researchers for the impact of variations in winding angle on FREE rotation, and we extend these results to include an analysis of the effect of winding angle on FREE force and moment generation. Finally, finite element results show that a $$30^{circ }$$ difference in winding angle dramatically alters the shape of the workspace generated by four FREEs assembled into a module. Concludingly, comments are made about the relative advantages and limitations of lumped-parameter and finite element models of FREEs and FREE modules in providing useful insights into their behavior.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"53 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-05-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527563","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-03DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00224-w
Tamura, Yoshihiro, Amano, Hisanori, Ota, Jun
Although the overall number of fires is decreasing, the number of special fires as buildings become larger, taller, and deeper and fires and spills in hazardous materials facilities such as petroleum complexes is on the rise and ensuring the safety of firefighters has become a problem. The use of teleoperated firefighting robots is expected to be a solution to this problem. It is important to be able to operate the robot well, recognize the environment, and make decisions on what actions to take to perform the firefighting more effectively. This is closely related to the design of human machine interface (HMI) for teleoperated robots, but much of the research on HMI for teleoperated robots is concerned with how to operate the robot and how to present the information that is needed for operation. In addition, as the overall number of fires is decreasing, young firefighters' (novices’) lack of experience in firefighting has become a problem. Therefore, teleoperated firefighting robots are required to have the HMI that enables supports to recognize the environment and make decisions in firefighting. This study presents an information presentation method that is based on the control mode in the contextual control model (COCOM) to ensure that novices can have multifaceted perspectives during reconnaissance and attenuation like experienced firefighters (experts). The effectiveness of this method is confirmed by 12 firefighters. As a result, this study confirms that the information presentation is designed considering the control mode in the COCOM, and it improves the score from multiple perspectives. The findings of this study will contribute to the future development of teleoperated firefighting robots.
{"title":"Information presentation method for teleoperated robots to support the multifaceted understanding of fire sites","authors":"Tamura, Yoshihiro, Amano, Hisanori, Ota, Jun","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00224-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00224-w","url":null,"abstract":"Although the overall number of fires is decreasing, the number of special fires as buildings become larger, taller, and deeper and fires and spills in hazardous materials facilities such as petroleum complexes is on the rise and ensuring the safety of firefighters has become a problem. The use of teleoperated firefighting robots is expected to be a solution to this problem. It is important to be able to operate the robot well, recognize the environment, and make decisions on what actions to take to perform the firefighting more effectively. This is closely related to the design of human machine interface (HMI) for teleoperated robots, but much of the research on HMI for teleoperated robots is concerned with how to operate the robot and how to present the information that is needed for operation. In addition, as the overall number of fires is decreasing, young firefighters' (novices’) lack of experience in firefighting has become a problem. Therefore, teleoperated firefighting robots are required to have the HMI that enables supports to recognize the environment and make decisions in firefighting. This study presents an information presentation method that is based on the control mode in the contextual control model (COCOM) to ensure that novices can have multifaceted perspectives during reconnaissance and attenuation like experienced firefighters (experts). The effectiveness of this method is confirmed by 12 firefighters. As a result, this study confirms that the information presentation is designed considering the control mode in the COCOM, and it improves the score from multiple perspectives. The findings of this study will contribute to the future development of teleoperated firefighting robots.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"22 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527574","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-03-26DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00221-z
Dadvar, Mehdi, Habibian, Soheil
The multidisciplinary nature of response robotics has brought about a diversified research community with extended expertise. Motivated by the recent accelerated rate of publications in the field, this paper analyzes the research trends, statistics, and implications of the literature from bibliometric standpoints. The aim is to study the global progress of response robotics research and identify the contemporary trends. To that end, we investigated the collaboration mapping together with the citation network to formally recognize impactful and contributing authors, publications, sources, institutions, funding agencies, and countries. We found how natural and human-made disasters contributed to forming productive regional research communities, while there are communities that only view response robotics as an application of their research. Furthermore, through an extensive discussion on the bibliometric results, we elucidated the philosophy behind research priority shifts in response robotics and presented our deliberations on future research directions.
{"title":"Contemporary research trends in response robotics","authors":"Dadvar, Mehdi, Habibian, Soheil","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00221-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00221-z","url":null,"abstract":"The multidisciplinary nature of response robotics has brought about a diversified research community with extended expertise. Motivated by the recent accelerated rate of publications in the field, this paper analyzes the research trends, statistics, and implications of the literature from bibliometric standpoints. The aim is to study the global progress of response robotics research and identify the contemporary trends. To that end, we investigated the collaboration mapping together with the citation network to formally recognize impactful and contributing authors, publications, sources, institutions, funding agencies, and countries. We found how natural and human-made disasters contributed to forming productive regional research communities, while there are communities that only view response robotics as an application of their research. Furthermore, through an extensive discussion on the bibliometric results, we elucidated the philosophy behind research priority shifts in response robotics and presented our deliberations on future research directions.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"80 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-03-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527561","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Continuum robots can enter narrow spaces and are useful for search and rescue missions in disaster sites. The exploration efficiency at disaster sites improves if the robots can simultaneously acquire several pieces of information. However, a continuum robot that can simultaneously acquire information to such an extent has not yet been designed. This is because attaching multiple sensors to the robot without compromising its body flexibility is challenging. In this study, we installed multiple small sensors in a distributed manner to develop a continuum-robot system with multiple information-gathering functions. In addition, a field experiment with the robot demonstrated that the gathered multiple information has a potential to improve the searching efficiency. Concretely, we developed an active scope camera with sensory functions, which was equipped with a total of 80 distributed sensors, such as inertial measurement units, microphones, speakers, and vibration sensors. Herein, we consider space-saving, noise reduction, and the ease of maintenance for designing the robot. The developed robot can communicate with all the attached sensors even if it is bent with a minimum bending radius of 250 mm. We also developed an operation interface that integrates search-support technologies using the information gathered via sensors. We demonstrated the survivor search procedure in a simulated rubble environment of the Fukushima Robot Test Field. We confirmed that the information provided through the operation interface is useful for searching and finding survivors. The limitations of the designed system are also discussed. The development of such a continuum robot system, with a great potential for several applications, extends the application of continuum robots to disaster management and will benefit the community at large.
{"title":"Development of a continuum robot enhanced with distributed sensors for search and rescue","authors":"Yamauchi, Yu, Ambe, Yuichi, Nagano, Hikaru, Konyo, Masashi, Bando, Yoshiaki, Ito, Eisuke, Arnold, Solvi, Yamazaki, Kimitoshi, Itoyama, Katsutoshi, Okatani, Takayuki, Okuno, Hiroshi G., Tadokoro, Satoshi","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00223-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00223-x","url":null,"abstract":"Continuum robots can enter narrow spaces and are useful for search and rescue missions in disaster sites. The exploration efficiency at disaster sites improves if the robots can simultaneously acquire several pieces of information. However, a continuum robot that can simultaneously acquire information to such an extent has not yet been designed. This is because attaching multiple sensors to the robot without compromising its body flexibility is challenging. In this study, we installed multiple small sensors in a distributed manner to develop a continuum-robot system with multiple information-gathering functions. In addition, a field experiment with the robot demonstrated that the gathered multiple information has a potential to improve the searching efficiency. Concretely, we developed an active scope camera with sensory functions, which was equipped with a total of 80 distributed sensors, such as inertial measurement units, microphones, speakers, and vibration sensors. Herein, we consider space-saving, noise reduction, and the ease of maintenance for designing the robot. The developed robot can communicate with all the attached sensors even if it is bent with a minimum bending radius of 250 mm. We also developed an operation interface that integrates search-support technologies using the information gathered via sensors. We demonstrated the survivor search procedure in a simulated rubble environment of the Fukushima Robot Test Field. We confirmed that the information provided through the operation interface is useful for searching and finding survivors. The limitations of the designed system are also discussed. The development of such a continuum robot system, with a great potential for several applications, extends the application of continuum robots to disaster management and will benefit the community at large.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527558","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-03-04DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00222-y
Hiroshi Ito, Satoshi Nakamura
{"title":"Rapid prototyping for series of tasks in atypical environment: robotic system with reliable program-based and flexible learning-based approaches","authors":"Hiroshi Ito, Satoshi Nakamura","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00222-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00222-y","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65734242","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-22DOI: 10.1186/s40648-021-00215-3
Inotsume, Hiroaki, Kubota, Takashi
In this paper, a novel terrain traversability prediction method is proposed for new operation environments. When an off-road vehicle is operated on rough terrains or slopes made up of unconsolidated materials, it is crucial to accurately predict terrain traversability to ensure efficient operations and avoid critical mobility risks. However, the prediction of traversability in new environments is challenging, especially for possibly risky terrains, because the traverse data available for such terrains is either limited or non-existent. To address this limitation, this study proposes an adaptive terrain traversability prediction method based on multi-source transfer Gaussian process regression. The proposed method utilizes the limited data available on low-risk terrains of the target environment to enhance the prediction accuracy on untraversed, possibly higher-risk terrains by leveraging past traverse experiences on multiple types of terrain surface. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated in scenarios where vehicle slippage and power consumption are predicted using a dataset of various terrain surfaces and geometries. In addition to predicting terrain traversability as continuous values, the utility of the proposed method is demonstrated in binary risk level classification of yet to be traversed steep terrains from limited data on safer terrains.
{"title":"Terrain traversability prediction for off-road vehicles based on multi-source transfer learning","authors":"Inotsume, Hiroaki, Kubota, Takashi","doi":"10.1186/s40648-021-00215-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-021-00215-3","url":null,"abstract":"In this paper, a novel terrain traversability prediction method is proposed for new operation environments. When an off-road vehicle is operated on rough terrains or slopes made up of unconsolidated materials, it is crucial to accurately predict terrain traversability to ensure efficient operations and avoid critical mobility risks. However, the prediction of traversability in new environments is challenging, especially for possibly risky terrains, because the traverse data available for such terrains is either limited or non-existent. To address this limitation, this study proposes an adaptive terrain traversability prediction method based on multi-source transfer Gaussian process regression. The proposed method utilizes the limited data available on low-risk terrains of the target environment to enhance the prediction accuracy on untraversed, possibly higher-risk terrains by leveraging past traverse experiences on multiple types of terrain surface. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated in scenarios where vehicle slippage and power consumption are predicted using a dataset of various terrain surfaces and geometries. In addition to predicting terrain traversability as continuous values, the utility of the proposed method is demonstrated in binary risk level classification of yet to be traversed steep terrains from limited data on safer terrains.","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":"108 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138527559","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-19DOI: 10.1186/s40648-022-00220-0
Yuha Koike, Shunnosuke Kodera, Y. Yokoyama, T. Hayakawa
{"title":"Real-time irradiation system using patterned light to actuate light-driven on-chip gel actuators","authors":"Yuha Koike, Shunnosuke Kodera, Y. Yokoyama, T. Hayakawa","doi":"10.1186/s40648-022-00220-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40648-022-00220-0","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37462,"journal":{"name":"ROBOMECH Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-02-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45877613","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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